The Role of Reputation in "Macbeth" and "The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde"

Summary: The reputation of key characters is important and is a life-changing factor in two classic works: "Macbeth" by William Shakespeare and "The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde" by Robert Louis Stevenson.

Reputation can be defined simply as a general opinion of the public towards a certain person, and is scrutinized by the character Iago, in William Shakespeare's play, Othello. He believes reputation can be perceived as having two basic meanings. His first view on the subject of reputation is that, "Reputation is an idle and most false imposition, oft got without merit, and lost without deserving (II.3.257-59)," which proves true when analyzing reputation in the play, Dr. Faustus, by Christopher Marlowe. Through this quote, reputation is not made to be particularly important, as shown by the character of Dr. Faustus and how he disregards his appearance to others while in search of supreme power. Iago's second view on reputation is that, "Who steals my purse steals trash; 'tis something, nothing; 'Twas mine, 'tis his...